Endocrine control of calcium homeostasis.

Abstract

SUMMARY Two endocrine glands of branchial origin are involved in regulation of calcium metabolism—the parathyroids which secrete parathormone (parathyroid hormone) in response to hypocalcaemia, and the ultimobranchial glands which release calcitonin (thyrocalcitonin) during hypercalcaemia. The ultimobranchial glands are distinct organs in most vertebrates but in mammals the cells become embedded in the internal parathyroid and thyroid where they constitute the parafollicular 'C' cells. Calcitonin can be extracted from mammalian thyroid (hence the alternative name, thyrocalcitonin) but it is present in much higher concentrations in the ultimobranchial glands of lower vertebrates. In mammals, both hormones appear to act primarily on bone resorption and calcium mobilization from the skeleton, which is stimulated by parathormone and inhibited by calcitonin. Secretion or release of both hormones is determined by the level of calcium in the blood, and the two constitute a dual endocrine control comparable to that of insulin and glucagon in regulation of blood glucose. The ultimobranchials are the older glands phylogenetically for they are found in sharks and bony fishes, while the parathyroids appear first in amphibians.